


the eye of the beholder

by ralf



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: A tiny smudge of angst, Alec Lightwood Loves Magnus Bane, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Humor, M/M, Magnus Bane's Cat Eyes, Protective Alec Lightwood, Underhill is a gentleman and a true friend, Vulnerable Magnus Bane, alec is overchallenged with technology, i'm making this a tag watch me, like a second okay, sorry i'm having too much fun with this i'll stop now, the saga continues, underhill to the rescue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-03
Updated: 2019-08-03
Packaged: 2020-07-30 14:02:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20098375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ralf/pseuds/ralf
Summary: Magnus blinks at him. “You've read my file?”“Of course.” Alec frowns at him. “Have you forgotten how we met? The arrangement to exchange the necklace for Clary's memories was a top priority mission. I had to prepare the best I could and that entailed studying my target.”Magnus's eyebrows rise. “You're aware this makes you sound like a hitman, right?”





	the eye of the beholder

**Author's Note:**

  * For [AlasDeAngelDeFuego](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlasDeAngelDeFuego/gifts), [Bohemian (Linguam)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Linguam/gifts), [08Amy1729](https://archiveofourown.org/users/08Amy1729/gifts), [lawsofchaos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lawsofchaos/gifts), [AtowncalledMalec](https://archiveofourown.org/users/AtowncalledMalec/gifts).

> thanks to ^everyone who <strike>peer pressured</strike> encouraged me to write this, i had a lot of fun with this fic XD and i hope you will, too ;)

Alec stares at his pad in concentration, willing the words to stop swimming into each other by sheer force of will. It's not working. He's read the same sentence at least five times now, and it's still a jumbled mess. He has no idea how to fix it.

“Reading something interesting?” Magnus teases, sliding his hands over Alec's shoulders, startling Alec out of his internal despairing. He hadn't even heard Magnus come home.

“I wish,” he groans, leaning back into Magnus's tender ministrations.

“Hmm, this sounds worse than your weekly report reading usually does.”

Alec lets his head fall against the backrest so he can look at Magnus upside down. “That's because it is. It's so much worse.”

Magnus's lips quirk and he presses a soft kiss to Alec's forehead before walking around the couch to settle in next to him. “What misdeeds have your Shadowhunters been up to that this week is so terrible?”

“Not using a spellchecker,” Alec mumbles, cuddling up against Magnus's side.

“What?”

Alec pats the pad in his lap. “These aren't the weekly reports. It's the quarterly update for our database. Every change has to be signed off by the Head of the Institute.” He groans again. “And if I have to read one more error riddled sentence that makes no sense I'm going to punch something.”

“Poor you,” Magnus commiserates in a tone that makes Alec wonder if he's really pitying him or secretly dubbing him _cute_ again. He fears it's the latter. “I guess battling spelling mistakes isn't the same as battling demons?”

“I mean, I can't smash my pad with a sword to get the job done. I'd fight a pack of raveners with my hands bound before I pick through another new entry for our database.”

“Is it really so bad?” Magnus asks, clearly unable to imagine the horrors Alec had to face these past hours.

“It's worse. I swear Lindsay's never learned a single thing about grammar in her entire life. She's so gonna get an earful for this.” Alec heaves a long sigh. “I have half a mind to put her on cleaning duty for a week, simply out of spite.”

“What a gruesome abuse of power,” Magnus muses.

“It's not gruesome if it's deserved,” Alec argues.

Magnus snorts. “What kind of entries are you adding to the database anyway?”

“It's mostly additions to existing entries to keep everyone's records up to date. If we're really lucky we gather new information on demons, new strategies to kill them more efficiently. New entries are only created for Shadowhunters starting active duty and first offenders.”

“Then I guess my file has existed for centuries,” Magnus comments idly.

“Yeah,” Alec agrees. “It's pretty extensive.”

Magnus blinks at him. “You've read my file?”

“Of course.” Alec frowns at him. “Have you forgotten how we met? The arrangement to exchange the necklace for Clary's memories was a top priority mission. I had to prepare the best I could and that entailed studying my target.”

Magnus's eyebrows rise. “You're aware this makes you sound like a hitman, right?”

“I clearly remember taking someone out at the club,” Alec quips.

That startles a laugh from Magnus. “If only you'd taken me out on a date as easily as you took out that circle member,” he laments, nudging Alec playfully.

“Well, better late than never, right,” Alec mutters, and Magnus presses a kiss to his cheek.

“You know I would have waited for you, don't you?” he whispers into Alec's ear. “Way beyond what I made you believe I would.”

Their gazes meet and Alec's heart drums hard against his ribs. Magnus's eyes are soft and dark with emotion and Alec feels like he's drowning in them.

“Magnus, I...” Words evade him and so he leans forward to capture Magnus's lips in a kiss, trying to convey everything he can't express. It's slow and achingly full of the gratitude he feels in every fiber. He wouldn't be who he is today without Magnus.

“I'm so glad I met you,” he breathes when they part.

Magnus touches their foreheads together. “Believe me, so am I.”

They stay like that for a few heartbeats, then Magnus steals another short kiss and points at the pad. “Now, I think you were going to show me my file.”

Alec smiles and grabs the device to pull up Magnus's entry. He'll take any distraction from his work (more like, torture) that he can get, and it's not like he's disclosing state secrets by letting Magnus look at his own record. If anything, Magnus has a right to see this.

The page loads and next to Magnus's personal data his profile picture appears. It's a dimly lit picture in blue tones. Magnus is not looking at the camera but off to the side. His entire posture radiates careless superiority, his eyes half closed and his lips pursed almost dismissively.

Magnus gasps. “Intolerable. This is a crime. This is... this is an act of war!”

“What?” Alec scans the page, alarmed, but it's exactly like it's always been and he can't find anything that would warrant such a reaction from Magnus. They haven't even reached the actual records part yet.

Magnus turns accusing eyes on him. “They got my bad side!”

Alec blinks, then huffs. “You don't have a bad side,” he scoffs. The notion alone is ridiculous. Absurd.

“I believe you are a bit biased,” Magnus says, a smile quirking his lips.

“Agree to disagree,” Alec shoots back.

“But seriously,” Magnus turns back to the picture. “This is what generations of Shadowhunters have seen when looking me up?” He shudders. Alec can't even tell if it's exaggerated or genuine which is slightly concerning.

“Probably not generations,” he tries to placate. “But this picture has been on your page for maybe a decade or something.” He clicks on the picture to display its metadata. “Yes, it was set about eight years ago.”

“Eight years,” Magnus repeats in a tone as if he's just received a death sentence.

“If it bothers you so much we can change it,” Alec suggests slowly.

Magnus stops dead in his tracks. “What? You can _do_ that?” he asks, staring at Alec as if he'd just offered to pluck every single star from the nightsky for him.

“Uh.” Alec shrugs. “Yeah?”

“_How?_” Magnus demands to know. “This is the central Shadowhunter database, isn't it? And you can just _change_ it?”

“That's actually thanks to you,” Alec says with a smile. “Since you currently live in New York my Institute holds the editing rights.” He waves a hand. “Requesting changes for an entry outside one's jurisdiction is possible, but a bureaucratic nightmare. It takes ages.”

Magnus stares at him with huge eyes and finally states, “Living in New York has never been more rewarding.”

Alec shakes his head fondly, switching to the gallery attached to Magnus's file and hands him the pad. “Here. Chose whichever picture you like.”

Magnus eagerly accepts the pad, scrolling through the photos. Then suddenly he freezes. His fingers twitch against the screen and Alec sees his expression shutter, a second in which his eyes flicker before his walls are up and his easy smile is replaced with a false one.

“Magnus? What is it?” Alec asks carefully.

“Nothing,” Magnus assures, his fake smile widening. “I just remembered that there's a martini with my name on it. It's very rude of me to keep it waiting.” He places the pad back in Alec's lap and gets up. “You want one, too?”

“Magnus...”

But Magnus is already halfway across the room, humming to himself as if this was a perfectly normal turn of events and Alec knows he won't be getting any answers from him.

With a soft sigh he glances at the pad, but there's nothing out of place as far as he can tell. There's the gallery of Magnus pictures – about thirty thumbnails crowding on the screen – and nothing else.

Alec puts the pad aside. He can try to figure out what set Magnus off later. For now his priority is coaxing Magnus out of his pretended lightheartedness back to actual joy.

~ ~ ~

Once he's at his office the following morning he pulls up the gallery connected to Magnus's entry on his computer. Predictably Magnus had glossed over the issue for the rest of the evening and Alec had refrained from asking about it. Whatever it was, it was clearly a sensitive topic and he didn't want to spoil Magnus's mood any further. Magnus had been skittish, but relaxed when he realized Alec wasn't about to prod at the subject. Alec held him tight that night.

Now he contemplates the variety of pictures in front of him, trying to pinpoint which one of them upset Magnus. The most recent ones all show Magnus at Pandemonium, in sharp clothes and surrounded by admirers. Then there's Magnus against the Brooklyn skyline, Magnus in a busy street that's definitely not in Brooklyn or even North America, Magnus on a field, Magnus in dark gear wielding a dangerous looking staff, Magnus in a bar with a martini in hand, Magnus in the mountains wearing an unfairly cute beanie, Magnus leveling a stare at the camera with his cat eyes, Magnus at a gala, Magnus--

Alec does a mental double take and clicks back. The moment he takes in the picture he knows that he's found the source of Magnus's distress. His throat goes tight.

He can count on one hand the occasions on which Magnus has shown him his cat eyes of his own accord. Even after Alec shyly suggested that Magnus could forgo the glamor if they're home alone nothing changed. As long as Magnus is awake and in control of his magic his glamor stays up. Alec was a little disappointed at first, but it quickly turned into heartache when he realized what it meant: that Magnus's issues with his warlock mark ran much deeper than simple dislike. He still doesn't know for sure why Magnus hates his eyes so much, but he can make a few guesses.

He can't imagine what it must have been like for Magnus to realize that this part of him that he keeps so painstakingly under wraps is easily accessible to thousands of people all over the world.

It's pure instinct to hit the delete button.

The computer gives a grating beep and an error menu pops up.

_You're not authorized to delete this file._

“Not author-- _what the hell?_” Alec frowns and presses the same keys more forcefully. The offending file stays stubbornly in place.

After three more attempts with increased vehemence and the same frustrating result Alec begrudgingly accepts that he might need a different approach. He stares at the mockingly flashing menu and scowls. It makes no sense. As Head of the New York Institute he should be able to edit this entry to his heart's content, but for some reason the system is blocking him.

This is clearly a matter of security, so the Head of Security is who he calls.

Underhill picks up on the third ring. “Yes?”

“I need you in my office asap. There's an issue with the database.”

“On my way.”

The call disconnects and Alec sighs, scowling at the screen some more. He tries to delete the file again for good measure, to no avail. Of course, nothing can ever be that easy.

Not thirty seconds later there's a knock on his door and Underhill appears. Alec belatedly realizes that maybe he should have navigated to a less incriminating page than the one of his boyfriend, but it's too late now. He manages to exit to the general gallery view and scroll so the offending picture isn't visible, but then Underhill is by his side.

“What's the.....” Underhill trails off when he catches sight of the multitude of Magnusses on the screen.

Alec lifts his chin defiantly, daring him to say anything.

Underhill doesn't, of course. After a moment of perplexity he turns back to Alec, face neutral. “What's the problem?”

Alec silently congratulates himself once more for his decision to appoint Underhill as Head of Security instead of letting Jace keep the job. He'd never live down the teasing from his parabatai, and in a matter this important time is of the essence. Underhill's most agreeable trait is never wasting anyone's time.

“Some of these files need to be deleted but it doesn't work. The database says I'm not authorized.”

Underhill frowns in thought, then his expression clears. “That's right. You can edit the entry, but any permanent deletions have to be approved by the Clave. There's a formal request for it, but...” he hesitates before pushing through, “you need to state a reason why you're requesting the deletion.”

Alec's displeasure must show on his face because Underhill winces in sympathy. Filing a formal request is not an option. Alec scowls again. Stupid Clave with even stupider rules.

“Is there another way to get rid of a picture?” he asks bluntly.

Underhill mulls it over for a moment, eyes darting over the screen. “Since you're authorized to edit the entry itself you could create a password protected subfolder. Everyone who wants to access it would have to request the password from you.”

A slow smile tugs on Alec's lips. He likes the sound of that.

.......Maybe the rules aren't _that_ stupid.

“Thank you, Underhill. I'll take it from here.”

Underhill nods and Alec sees the tiniest hint of amusement in his eyes. “You're welcome.”

~ ~ ~

When Magnus comes home that day, Alec has his pad at the ready.

“I set a new photo for your profile,” he opens.

“Oh?”

“Yeah. You wanna see?”

Magnus comes closer wearily and Alec hands him the pad, leaning into his side so they can watch it together.

The image he picked is possibly his least favorite of all the pictures in the databse – if there can even be such a thing as a 'least favorite' when it comes to pictures of Magnus. It shows Magnus in sharp clothes and sharper makeup, the hint of a self-confident smile playing on his lips. He's facing the camera head-on and there's no trace of emotion in his eyes. He looks coldly, distantly perfect, not a hair out of place and the snake cuff curled around the shell of his ear timelessly elegant. He looks untouchable.

It's a fitting picture for the High Warlock of Brooklyn, for one of the most powerful warlocks in the world.

But it's not _Magnus_. That's why Alec decided on the picture. Not everyone is entitled to see Magnus, and it should be Magnus's choice who he grants that privilege.

Magnus looks at the picture for a few long moments before turning to Alec. He doesn't have to say anything, Alec sees the approval in the shape of his smile.

“I actually wanted to show you something else, too,” he ventures carefully.

As soon as his finger nears the gallery button Magnus tenses. “Alec...”

Alec stops and catches Magnus's gaze. “Hey. Trust me on this, okay?”

Magnus hesitates for a second and the vulnerability creeping into his eyes squeezes at Alec's heart. “Okay.”

The gallery loads and Magnus frowns when he catches sight of the brandnew subfolder. “This wasn't there yesterday,” he says, pointing at it.

“Yeah.” Alec clears his throat. “While going through the photos I picked out those with your cat eyes and moved them to this folder. It's password protected. I couldn't delete them so this was the next best thing.”

Magnus blinks at the folder icon and Alec can feel him processing this new information. When their eyes meet again Alec's breath hitches with the intensity searing in Magnus's gaze.

“I could tell something was bothering you,” he rasps. “And.. you don't have to tell me everything. But that doesn't mean you have to hide from me either. I'll always have your back.”

Magnus takes a shuddering breath and drops his glamor.

The air punches out of Alec's lungs. He _knows_ it's intentional. A sign of gratitude, a show of trust. Of love.

And even though he wants nothing more than to look into those eyes he loves so much, he's helpless to do anything but kiss Magnus with everything he has.

**Author's Note:**

> 1) You can actually read where I accidentally spilled sap all over the beginning of the fic, lol. (The sap at the end was intentional though.)  
2) If you wanna read my exhaustive analysis of Magnus's issues with his eyes click [here](https://ralfstrashcan.tumblr.com/post/181029533794/possible-origins-of-magnuss-warlock-mark).  
3) I didn't make up the picture of Magnus with the beanie, it's [canon](https://66.media.tumblr.com/e53626dfb5a2439c51c4a3d6dcb3f0c1/tumblr_pvoiab8apJ1x4w9bgo2_1280.png) ;) Also I didn't find a perfect picture of what Alec set as Magnus's new file picture, but I imagine something along [these lines](https://66.media.tumblr.com/ee9f4b8e4f1fae60e743f49a3778500a/tumblr_pvoiab8apJ1x4w9bgo3_1280.jpg). Here's the [tumblr post](https://ralfstrashcan.tumblr.com/post/186752000634/will-be-using-these-infor-my-new-ficlet-link-to) with the pictures (that also contains a link to the fic if you feel like advertising me lol).  
4) Hope you enjoyed the ficlet, if you did I'd be thrilled if you let me know :)


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